2013 NHL OFFICIAL Offseason Thread

[joelcairo]

You go in as an individual - you are not tied to a team.

Alfie's whole career has been as a Sen - but he never won a Cup there and there's a very good chance that he WILL win a Cup with the Wings.

Think of Bourque - no Cups in two decades with Boston but presto a Cup with the Lanche at the end of his career. Hasek - no Cups with Chicago (where laughably he was a backup to Ed "Billion Dollar" Belfour) or Buffalo but a Cup with the CUP FACTORY that is Detroit. Or closer to home for YOU, think of Andreychuk: certainly no Cup with the Leafs or Sabres but a Cup with the Bolts.

Shanny of course said that his heart is still with Detroit where he won 3 Cups and Chelly said he loves Detroit where he won two Cups. And I bet Niedermayer WISHES he had the golden opportunity to play in Detroit - just think how much MORE amazing they would have been if they had had BOTH Lidstrom and Niedermayer on D! The second greatest D-man of all time and ALSO Niedermayer!

 

[G1GBallday]

wonderful memories of that history-making game 7.

This is for you Joel to help keep those wonderful memories as fresh as possible.


EDIT: When did this become a free for all thread? Keep this thread on topic and free of flame posts.



M8

 

[lgna69xxx]

Alfies legacy will always be with the Sens way more than anything he does with the wings...btw you added a old Alfie not the, in his prime Alfie... not a difference maker and neither is Stephen Weiss.... you will be lucky to make the playoffs playing in a physical eastern conference... Pavel better keep his head up playing against Boston, Toronto, Ottawa, Pitt, Philly and the Rangers to name a few... he should light the lamp against the habs however.

 

[lgna69xxx]

Big Georges Laraque Slams Habs For Parros Signing

Former NHL enforcer Georges Laraque may be headed into the political arena after a three-year absence from hockey, but it hasn't stopped him from voicing his opinion on matters around the league - namely that of his former club the Montreal Canadiens.

Laraque - who confirmed Tuesday that he will vie for a seat in the House of Commons for the Green Party - criticized the Habs' acquisition of tough guy George Parros to a Montreal newspaper, saying he wasn't intimidating enough in a competitive division.

"I know him and he's a good guy - he will defend his teammates," Laraque told La Presse. "I'm sure that when the Canadiens signed Parros, the Bruins and Shawn Thornton were relieved. In Ottawa and Toronto, they were relieved."

Montreal acquired Parros from the Florida Panthers last week in exchange for forward Philippe Lefebvre and a seventh-round pick in the 2014 NHL Draft. The 33-year-old had nine fighting majors in 39 games last season while averaging just over six minutes of ice time.

"He's a good guy, but in the NHL you have to intimidate," Laraque continued. "He has a good technique, but he's more like a wrestler than a finisher...Florida wouldn't let Parros go if he was doing the job.

"The Canadiens' division is the most tough - I'm sure they're better with him," added Laraque. "But knowing the Montreal market, people will begin to wonder why they got this guy after two or three beatings."

The Canadiens signed Laraque as a free agent in 2008, looking to add toughness to a squad that had been manhandled by Boston in the playoffs. But Laraque rarely dropped the gloves. In two seasons with the Canadiens, he had one goal and four assists in 61 games.

The Canadiens announced would buy him out a year-and-a-half later when they banished him from the team, apparently because he had become a distraction. He stayed on the 23-man roster for the rest of the season but was not seen at games or practices.

"Some will say I'm jealous and frustrated, but I'm not," he told La Presse. "I know the guy - I know them all. But those who don't believe me will see for themselves."

 

[Doc Holliday]

Bruins sign Tuukka Rask to 8-year, $56 million deal

Wow!!!!!!!!!

 

[lgna69xxx]

Quite a risky contract for a guy who's career high in wins in a NHL season is 22. Lets see, they won a cup with a different goalie a few yrs ago but sign a massive contract to a guy who just LOST them the cup this year

He is a very good goalie but 7mil for 5 years would of been perfect but who else do they have? They let Khudobin go for only $200,000 more than thhey signed Chad Johnson for which was nuts! AH is 10 times the goalie CJ is. Haha, love it tho!

I'd much rather have the duo of Bernier/Reimer at 4.7 mil combined than Rask/Johnson at 7.6mil.......... can Johnson handle the net if Rask gets hurt? Also not much out there if that happened...A 40 yr old Tim Thomas thats been away from the game for a yr maybe lol

 

[joelcairo]

Yet another dumb move. No question that Rask is a good goalie...but EIGHT freakin' years??????? Hasn't anyone learned from the boneheaded moves made with DiPietro, Luongo, Yashin (!), Komi, Grabovski, Clarkson, etc, etc.....

 

[lgna69xxx]

Not many like the length of Clarksons deal, but this is what happens if you really want a guy who fits your team mold to a T and is on the open market, which was reported 20 teams were in on Dave Clarkson and rumor was he left money on the table to come "home"...Are the Leafs better off with Clarkson on their team? Absolutely 100% so its a risk worth taking. (meaning the last cpl years of the term, as he should be a very productive player for at least the first 5 seasons and possibly all 7, who really knows) by then they could always buy him out and take the cap hit as the cap should be much higher by then anyways so not as much of a risk as some think and like i said it makes the Leafs much better with him than w/o him.

Rask was not a UFA so the deal is a little out there so to speak but he means as much or more to the Bruins than just about any other player they have besides Bergeron and Chara. He is part of their "core" and those guys dont come cheap, in salary or term most times.

Kessel will get 8 years between 7-8 million soon and worth every penny no matter what the haters will say. He is not just a one dimensional player anymore and under Carlyle has become a complete player and very good defensively and a quiet leader. Lock him up Nonis. 8 years 60 mil, with a limited NTC.

 

[Doc Holliday]

Quebecer David Perron traded to Edmonton Oilers

When David Perron returned to game action in December 2011 after missing 13 months with a concussion, he produced like he had never left.

And though his points dropped this past season, Perron was still an effective offensive performer for the St. Louis Blues.

Now Perron could get a chance to add even more on offence after being traded to the Edmonton Oilers for Magnus Paajarvi and a second-round pick. In Edmonton, the 25-year-old will be part of a young core of skilled players along with Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle, Sam Gagner, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Nail Yakupov.

Perron had 10 goals and 15 assists in 48 games last season, doing so in a more conservative system under coach Ken Hitchcock. Blues general manager Doug Armstrong believes Perron can thrive in any system, but the Oilers’ one might fit particularly well.

“He’s a guy who has a skill set that’ll be better suited to playing the game the way that we want to play the game,” Oilers GM Craig MacTavish said in a radio interview with AM-630 in Edmonton. “There’s going to be more attack opportunities, more rush opportunities.

“This guy has potentially one of the best set of hands in the league.”

Perron is expected to play left wing with the Oilers and will be counted on to kill penalties and help out on the offensive end, as well. In 340 games with the Blues, he had 84 goals and 114 assists.

“I think that David, he’s a dynamic player, and he has an unbelievable skill-set that sometimes takes a little bit of time to get used to playing with ... for his teammates to get to understand his nuances,” Armstrong said on a conference call.

Perron has three more years left on his contract that counts just over US$3.8 million against the salary cap. The Blues need to free up space to sign restricted-free-agent defenceman Alex Pietrangelo, but Armstrong said the deal had more to do with diversifying at forward.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/hockey/oilers-acquire-david-perron-from-blues/article13118606/

The Habs have tried several times to obtain Perron over the past 2 years & are likely very disappointed he's heading to Edmonton.

 

[Doc Holliday]

Cairo, add Bryzgalov, Lecavalier & Malone to your list.

Iggy, i agree with your statements re: the Clarkson deal.

Don Cherry was on Primetime Sports the other day and talked about that deal. He got upset at the complainers & blurted out: "The only reason the Leafs gave him 7 years is because everyone else in the league was offering him 7 years!!!! If the Leafs didn't match, he'd be playing elsewhere. Why don't people get that???"

Grapes is indeed correct.

Clarkson was likely headed to Ottawa if Toronto didn't match what everyone else had offered him. I repeat: EVERYONE ELSE. He was offered slightly more money to play in Edmonton, but he preferred to play in his home province.

That's unrestricted free agency. The players & their agents dictate what they want to be paid & for how long. They more than often get their way.

On another note, RFA defenceman Carl Gunnersson is taking the Leafs to arbitration.

 

[lgna69xxx]

KOVALCHUK RETIRES! What? Wow!

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=427507

 

[Doc Holliday]

I heard that Kovalchuk felt guilty after reading Cairo's last post & decided to retire & head back to Russia.

 

[joelcairo]

Too bad Kovalchuk is leaving - fine AND entertaining player. I'd rather see someone like Kessel leave - lack of charisma. Hockey is supposed to be fun to watch.

 

[lgna69xxx]

lack of charisma? Kessel? hahahaha..... not only does he have the "it" factor, he gets the babes as well! lol..... here is some (awkward) Charisma, but Charisma nonetheless haha.... love the "Thrill" person and player, he keeps it real in person and plays unreal on the ice.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXXUsPHM2D0

 

[Doc Holliday]

Right. And Pavel Datsyuk & Henrik Zetterberg just ooze charisma!! :lol:

 

[Doc Holliday]

If i could rid the NHL of one Russian player, i'd pick Pavel Datsyuk.

One fruitcake in the NHL is one fruitcake too many.

 

[joelcairo]

If i could rid the NHL of one Russian player, i'd pick Pavel Datsyuk.

I can understand that the Leafs would happily eliminate all the top players on all the other teams - it might improve their chances. And since Datsyuk is the most skilled player in the world, it makes perfect sense that you would start with him.

 

[joelcairo]

I kept the words that I agree with. I can't BELIEVE that you posted that clip thinking you were DEFENDING Poor Phil!

 

[lgna69xxx]

Phil is a care free guy and loves life and loves the Leafs and the city of Toronto... i dont need to defend a guy like that, he is happy in his skin and to me thats AOK! Love the "thrill" and he would be the first to admit he is a little awkward, BUT he is one hell of a hockey player and his best years are ahead of him... quite scary to think by fans of other teams, so much so all they do is hate on the guy, but MERCI BEAUCOUP! (we know why you do)

I kept the words that I agree with. I can't BELIEVE that you posted that clip thinking you were DEFENDING Poor Phil!

 

[joelcairo]

You misunderstand me Ig - I certainly don't hate Phil. In fact I feel very sorry for him and I sincerely hope the rest of his life is very happy - he deserves it after all he's had to endure. Best wishes Phil!